Crackdown announced amid outrage over killing as Venezuelan man is heldEcuador has launched a crackdown on Venezuelan migrants after a pregnant Ecuadorian woman was killed on Saturday evening.The police and Ecuador’s president, Lenín Moreno, have said that that Diana Carolina Ramírez’s killer was her boyfriend, a Venezuelan immigrant. His name was given as Yordy Rafael LG, who was said to bein custody. Continue reading... Tags: Americas, World news, Migration, Venezuela, Ecuador, Lenín Moreno, Diana Carolina Ramírez, Yordy Rafael LG

Government accuses ‘shadowy interests’ in national guard of launching insurrectionVenezuela’s government has claimed to have foiled what appeared to be an attempted military insurrection, blaming the mutiny on “shadowy interests of the extreme right”.In a statement, Venezuela accused a small group of “assailants” from the Bolivarian National Guard (GNB) of “betraying their oath of loyalty to the homeland” by kidnapping four officials in an attempt to steal weapons that began at about 2.50am loca... Tags: Americas, World news, Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, Hugo Chavez, Bolivarian National Guard GNB

An unusual set of celestial circumstances came together over Sunday night and the wee hours of Monday for sky watchers in Europe, Africa and the Americas, where the moon was fully obscured before lighting up again with a faint red glow. The eclipse lasted about three hours: during the first hour the full moon was gradually swallowed up by the shadow of the Earth, then an hour of total eclipse where it was not invisible but instead appeared tinted in hues of red, orange and pink, followed finall... Tags: Science, Americas, Earth, Europe Africa, Wolf Moon

GoFundMe receives almost $80,000 for Bahamian workers who lost out in festival scamTens of thousands of pounds have been raised for Bahamian restaurant workers whose life savings were “wiped out” in a multimillion-pound fraud by organisers of the Fyre festival.Maryann Rolle said her team worked round the clock preparing 1,000 meals a day for festival staff but went unpaid when it imploded spectacularly in April 2017. Continue reading... Tags: Film, Americas, World news, Netflix, Culture, Festivals, Bahamas, Documentary films, MaryAnn Rolle

A New York court has heard how the Mexican drug lord Joaquín Guzmán eluded capture with his mistress while paying millions to politicians and policeThat Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán – on trial in New York for heading the world’s biggest drug cartel – escaped a raid through a tunnel beneath his bath is legend; what is not known is that he did so stark naked with the mistress with whom he was abed when the Mexican marines arrived.That Guzmán’s Sinaloa cartel bribed politicians and senior military off... Tags: New York, Mexico, Americas, World news, US news, Drugs trade, El Chapo, Guzman, Sinaloa, Joaquin Guzman, Joaquín 'el Chapo' Guzmán

At least 66 dead and 76 injured in blast that occurred as people tried to fill containers with fuel The death toll from the explosion of a pipeline ruptured by suspected fuel thieves in central Mexico has risen to 66, the governor of the state of Hidalgo said on Saturday. At a news conference with the Mexican president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, the Hidalgo governor, Omar Fayad, said 76 people had also been injured in Friday evening’s explosion, which happened as people tried to fill containe... Tags: Mexico, Americas, World news, Hidalgo, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Omar Fayad

Television footage showed the pipeline gushing fuel earlier in the day and people queuing with containersAt least 20 people have been killed and 71 injured in central Mexico when a pipeline ruptured by suspected fuel thieves exploded as people were trying to fill up containers, the government of Hidalgo state said.Mexican television footage showed flames leaping into the night sky on Friday in the municipality of Tlahuelilpan to the north of Mexico City as people shouted and cried for help. Cont... Tags: Mexico, Americas, World news, Mexico City, Hidalgo, Tlahuelilpan

After Norway’s Storelgen stole Mac the Moose’s place as world’s tallest, a Canadian city hopes to ‘stick it to Oslo’ by increasing their statue’s sizeFor three decades, the Canadian city of Moose Jaw took pride in its status as the home of the world’s largest moose statute.Standing at a majestic 10 meters tall, Mac the Moose has weathered brutal winters, graffiti and even the inglorious loss of his jaw. His recognition was so great that in 2013, he was named the city’s most popular celebrity. Co... Tags: Americas, World news, Cities, Canada, Art and design, Sculpture, Norway, Moose, Oslo, Moose Jaw, Storelgen, Mac the Moose

Darren Smalley acquitted after woman testified she had been raped by four men at military barracks in Nova Scotia in April 2015A British Royal Navy sailor accused of taking part in the gang rape of a Canadian woman at a military barracks has been acquitted of sexual assault.Darren Smalley was the only person tried over the April 2015 alleged sexual assault in Halifax, in the eastern province of Nova Scotia. Charges against three fellow sailors in the case were dropped or stayed. Continue reading... Tags: Americas, World news, Canada, Nova Scotia, Halifax, British Royal Navy, Darren Smalley, Nova Scotia Charges

José Aldemar Rojas of ELN also died in Colombia car bombingExplosion at police academy left 21 dead and 70 woundedColombian authorities said that a one-armed explosives expert belonging to the country’s last remaining rebel group carried out a car bombing against a police academy that left 21 dead and more than 70 wounded.The chief prosecutor, Néstor Martínez, said at a press conference on Friday that the man who carried out Thursday’s brazen attack, the deadliest in 15 years, was a longtime mem... Tags: Americas, World news, Colombia, Bogota, National Liberation Army, ELN, Nestor Martinez, José Aldemar Rojas

Brazilian president said he will do ‘everything for democracy’ in a video message as his son called Nicolás Maduro a ‘cancer’Brazil’s rightwing president, Jair Bolsonaro, has piled further pressure on Venezuela’s embattled leader, Nicolás Maduro, vowing to do “everything for democracy to be re-established”. Related: Rightwing Venezuelan exiles hope Bolsonaro will help rid them of Maduro Continue reading... Tags: Americas, World news, Brazil, Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, Jair Bolsonaro, Bolsonaro

Blast also injured more than 50 people, but authorities have yet to suggest who was behind the attackAt least 20 people have been killed and more than 50 others injured in a car bombing at a Colombian police academy in Bogotá, recalling the high-profile attacks associated with the bloodiest chapters of the country’s guerrilla and drug conflicts.The scene outside the General Santander police academy was chaotic after the mid-morning explosion, with ambulances and helicopters rushing to the normal... Tags: Americas, World news, Colombia, Santander, Bogota

Blast also injured more than 50 people, but authorities have yet to suggest who was behind the attackAt least 10 people have been killed and more than 50 others injured in a car bombing at a Colombian police academy in Bogotá, recalling the high-profile attacks associated with the bloodiest chapters of the country’s guerrilla and drug conflicts.The scene outside the General Santander police academy was chaotic after the mid-morning explosion, with ambulances and helicopters rushing to the normal... Tags: Americas, World news, Colombia, Santander, Bogota

A car bomb has been detonated at a police academy in Bogotá, killing at least nine people and injuring 22, according to the country’s defence ministry.The scene outside the General Santander police academy was chaotic, with ambulances and helicopters rushing to the normally tightly controlled facilityCar bomb kills at least nine at police academy in Bogotá Continue reading... Tags: Americas, Colombia, Bogota, Bogotá Continue, General Santander

Blast also injured 22 people, according to police, but authorities have yet to suggest who was behind the attackAt least nine people have been killed and another 22 injured in a car bombing at a Colombian police academy in Bogotá, recalling the high-profile attacks associated with the bloodiest chapters of the country’s guerrilla and drug conflicts.The scene outside the General Santander police academy was chaotic after the mid-morning explosion, with ambulances and helicopters rushing to the no... Tags: Americas, World news, Colombia, Santander, Bogota

Blast also injured 10 people, according to country’s defence ministry, as ambulances rush to the sceneA car bomb has been detonated at a police academy in Bogotá, killing at least eight people and injuring 10 according to country’s defence ministry.The scene outside the General Santander police academy was chaotic, with ambulances and helicopters rushing to the normally tightly controlled facility. Continue reading... Tags: Americas, World news, Colombia, Bogota, General Santander

Five dead and 10 injured in blast, says mayor of Colombian capital, as ambulances rush to the sceneA car bomb has been detonated at a police academy in Bogotá, killing at least eight people and injuring 10 according to Colombian authorities.The scene outside the General Santander police academy was chaotic, with ambulances and helicopters rushing to the normally tightly controlled facility. Continue reading... Tags: Americas, World news, Colombia, Santander, Bogota

Model attacks rising Amazon deforestation and sets out her environmental credentialsThe Brazilian model Gisele Bündchen has rebutted an extraordinary attack by Brazil’s agriculture minister, who called her a “bad Brazilian” for her environmental activism and said she did not know “the facts”.Bündchen said the “bad Brazilians” were those responsible for Brazil’s worst deforestation figures in a decade. Continue reading... Tags: Amazon, Environment, Americas, World news, Conservation, Deforestation, Brazil, Gisele Bündchen, Bündchen

Civil society groups condemn move by minister, appointed by far-right president Jair Bolsonaro, as illegal attack on environmentBrazil’s new environment minister, Ricardo Salles, has suspended all partnerships and agreements with non-governmental organizations for 90 days, in a move that was described as “a war against NGOs”.Announcing the move, Salles said the three-month suspension was to allow a re-evaluation of such partnerships, but civil society organizations described the move as a blatan... Tags: Americas, World news, Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, Salles, Ricardo Salles

The latest group set off from the notoriously violent Honduran city of San Pedro Sula at the start of this weekHundreds of Central American migrants have continued their march towards the United States, crossing from Honduras into Guatemala, as Donald Trump again demanded the construction of a border wall he claims would keep such groups out. Related: ‘No way to live here’: new Honduran caravan sets off north as Trump blasts warnings Continue reading... Tags: Americas, World news, United States, US immigration, Honduras, Guatemala, Donald Trump, Trump, San Pedro Sula, Trump Administration

The latest group set off from the notoriously violent Honduran city of San Pedro Sula at the start of this weekHundreds of Central American migrants have continued their march towards the United States, crossing from Honduras into Guatemala, as Donald Trump again demanded the construction of a border wall he claims would keep such groups out. Related: ‘No way to live here’: new Honduran caravan sets off north as Trump blasts warnings Continue reading... Tags: Americas, World news, United States, US immigration, Honduras, Guatemala, Donald Trump, Trump, San Pedro Sula, Trump Administration